Gingerbread all round
by Be Rose
Summary: When she is just twelve, Kora visits her great-aunt and finds her stuck in her oven. Years later she inherits the cottage and sets about fulfilling her great-aunts last wish. Can Hansel and Gretel be lured back to the gingerbread house? Short story (3 chapters) written specially for Christmas. Please read and review.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Emma, Columbus, what do you think? Doesn't it look nice?"

Emma blinked, curled up and continued her nap; Columbus just wandered off.

"Well," thought Kora, "that's what you get with cats; absolutely no interest in anything but their own comfort."

She looked at her work again. The big fir next to the house looked wonderful, decorated with small, bright red apples and strings of nuts and berries but her masterpiece was the house. The door was a giant slab of chocolate, the windows were made of candyfloss, and the roof tiles were pancakes. The walls were gingerbread, of course. The steps, slabs of nougat, had a banister of sugar canes. The door and window frames were decorated with cream filled chocolates. Liquorice ivy and marzipan roses clambered all over the house. Nobody, neither child nor grown-up, would be able to resist it.

She went inside, followed by the cats who jumped on a windowsill and looked out at the snow-covered area in front of the cottage. Emma sat in the dining area to the left of the door. On a sideboard stood plates, cutlery and glasses ready to set the dinner table for a party of nine. Columbus preferred the kitchen, to the right of the door. He hoped to pick up a few titbits while Kora was cooking. At the far end of the kitchen-dining area was the comfortable lounge with an open fire. Logs were crackling spreading a scent of pine. Kitchen, dining room and lounge were decorated for Christmas with wreaths, garlands and candles. A large Christmas tree, decorated like the one outside, stood next to the spiral staircase to the upper floor between the kitchen-dining area and the sitting area. Kora went upstairs and inspected the three double bedrooms and the special bedroom for the children. Here was the only edible furniture. The matrasses and pillows on the four little beds were made of marshmallow and warm square waffles were the covers.

Everything was in order. She had nothing left to do but wait for the guests. She was sure they would come; the bait had been cleverly laid.

ooOOoo

Kora was a witch, her whole family were witches. They had always been in the top ten of witching families in Wicclan, the realm of witches, and had never dropped below five until Kora's mother had married; something that had never happened before. No witch of the Blackwart family had ever done that. Yes, they mated; yes, they got pregnant but marrying was just not done. They didn't even keep male babies. At best they dropped them off with the father, at worst … who knew.

.

When Kora's mother decided to become Mrs Weiss, the family disowned her. They could not believe she had dropped the Blackwart name. Then Kora and her twin brother were born. Mrs Weiss kept the birth of Corina and Carsten secret. The family Weiss had even moved to another country. Unfortunately the Blackwarts found out when the twins were eight years old. They claimed Mrs Weiss was no fit mother for a young witch and she didn't have the courage to stand up to them. The witches' high court declared that the female child had to be raised within the Blackwart family and Mr and Mrs Weiss had to give up their little girl or risk curses and worse.

.

Little Corina Weiss became Kora Blackwart and lived with her aunt and cousin Grimmelda who was Kora's age. Although Kora had never seen or performed a spell, she quickly learned and was allowed to go with her cousin to the Screecherella Academy for Gifted Witches. The family nodded in approval but on the first day Kora rebelled. To take on the Blackwart family at the age of twelve was brave, if not foolhardy, but she did it. Kora kept her first name because she preferred it to Corina, but when asked she said her name was Kora Weiss. No threat helped, no curse worked. The Blackwarts had to accept the name Kora Weiss. From then on she became the white sheep of the Blackwart family.

.

After that Grimmelda's mother refused to have Kora in her house, claiming she would be a bad influence on her daughter. The most powerful of the great-aunts though recognised the potential for greatness in a young witch who took on a whole coven and won. They wanted to nurture her, bring her back to the fold of the family and get her to change her name back to Blackwart. Each holiday she was to move in with a different great-aunt.

.

The first break she was supposed to spend with great-aunt Virulla who lived in a cottage deep in the woods on the border of Wicclan, near the tiny village of Greenwood on the Vee. When she arrived at the cottage she found the door open and her great-aunt Virulla stuck in her oven. Kora pulled her out of the fire and gave her first aid. Then she sent one of her aunt's message-bats to get an ambulance. The winged conveyance landed silently and unnoticed in front of the gingerbread cottage. Kora helped her great-aunt inside and both were taken to the Screecherella Magic Hospital. Virulla completely recovered but didn't want to go back to her cottage; instead she went to the Screecherella Old Age Witches Home. Kora often visited her there and they would talk for hours on end.

.

At the age of eighteen Kora and Grimmelda both graduated from the Screecherella Academy for Gifted Witches. Grimmelda's mother threw a big party for her daughter's graduation. That Grimmelda had graduated only just was of no importance. That Kora had graduated with flying colours was not mentioned.

Grimmelda and Kora were now official witches and allowed to have their own cat. Grimmelda proudly showed of a sleek, pitch-black, panther-like cat the size of a big lion's cub. It came from an expensive magic pet shop and had a pedigree the size of a novel. Kora's Emma looked pathetic by comparison - the size of an ordinary cat, obviously pregnant and definitely not black.

"Not even white," the great-aunts said, "that would have been acceptable, a sort of negative black cat."

Kora thought her Emma was much better than any cat. She had an unusual pattern, tabby stripes over a tortoiseshell background. They had taken to each other at first sight and the Witch-Cat Rescue Centre had been only too pleased to get rid of a small-sized, pregnant, non-black cat.

"She's a lovely cat, and very clever," Kora defended her cat.

"Your cat should be big and black, not small and common. You're a member of the premier witches' family of the land, remember that."

They had started to wonder if Kora would ever be a worthy member of the Blackwart family. "Good thing the girl had decided to use her father's name," they whispered to each other. "It might have harmed the reputation of the Blackwart name if she had used it."

Then the aunts turned back to Kora and added, "If the kitten is black, you can keep that and get rid of this one."

Emma's kitten was black … nearly. He, for it was a tom, was smoky-black with …hm … negative black on his face, belly and paws. Kora named him Columbus because he loved exploring. When she showed him to the family they nearly disowned Kora. Columbus saved her by starting a fight with Grimmelda's black giant. He sent it scurrying up the curtains where he didn't deign to follow it.

.

Kora was allowed to stay in the family. She had no real home but spent a few days with this aunt, a week with that one; most of the time she stayed with her great-aunt Virulla at the OAW Home, even if she only had a sofa to sleep on.

.

Towards the end of the summer holidays, Kora received a letter telling her she had been given a cottage in Woodbridge, a large town outside witches' country, quite a distance away from the residences of the Blackwart family. Kora decided to take it even if she didn't know who had arranged it. She'd wanted to get away from the constant scrutiny of her family. She wanted to be independent from them. She very much wanted a place of her own. When she told the great-aunts she wouldn't need to stay with them anymore they were surprised. When she mentioned the name of Woodbridge they were furious.

A family council was called together and Kora was ordered to attend. Kora's great-aunts, aunts, cousins and family members even further removed were there; every witch of the Blackwart family except Kora's mother and great-aunt Virulla, who'd been written of the moment she entered a Home. They were all sitting together like a court of justice, accusing her of failing the family, just like her mother had done.

"No Blackwart would ever deign to live in so ordinary a place," they said. "If you accept this offer we will disown you. We will forever strike you from the family. Your name will not be mentioned anymore."

"I don't see how it's got anything to do with the Blackwart family anyway," said Kora. "I'm not a Blackwart but a Weiss. It's none of your business where I live or what I do. I strike you lot from MY family. And one more thing: should I ever have female children I advise you not to try with me what you did to my mother. No matter how many councils you call together, no matter if you go to the witches' high court, no matter if you go to the highest witches' authority, Screecherella herself, you won't get my daughters. Is that clear? You! Will! Never! Get! My! Daughters!"

For a moment all was silent. As if Death Himself had walked into the room. Then the most powerful Blackwart witch stood up.

"How dare you challenge us? You're barely a grown-up witch. You need to be punished."

She flicked her hand but all her power was not enough. Kora not only blocked the spell, but reversed it and turned the great-aunt into a puppy. Immediately the rest tried to undo the spell but in the end they had to ask Kora.

"Please, Kora, undo the spell. We don't seem to be able," they begged, not at all as high and mighty as they had been.

"It'll wear off in a week," said Kora. "Take it as a warning to leave me alone."

Then she left the room, leaving the Blackwart coven in complete disarray. They now knew better than to interfere in Kora's life. For years she had nothing to do with the Blackwart witches. The only one she still visited was great-aunt Virulla at the home.

.

When Kora was twenty-nine Virulla died. It came as a shock to Kora and the rest of the family when Virulla's will was read. She had left everything she owned, including her enchanted house in the forest of Greenwood on the Vee, to Kora.

The Blackwarts protested loudly, contested the will and declared that Virulla had been in no fit state to manage her affairs. The result was that the will was upheld and the Blackwart family dropped out of the top fifty of witching families. That was the last time Kora saw any member of the Blackwart family again.

.

As soon as the will was declared legal and was no longer contested, Kora started on fulfilling great-aunt Virulla's last wishes. First of all she looked for the treasure Virulla had hidden in her house but Kora couldn't find it. She turned the house inside out, lifted it up, shook it violently, but nothing fell out, least of all a treasure. It was as Virulla and Kora had thought. The children, Hansel and Gretel, had found it and taken it.

Next she repaired the house and made it into the most irresistible gingerbread house she could imagine. When it was all ready, she laid a trail of sweets, enchanted so only the right person could see them, that led from the clearing in front of the gingerbread house to the edge of the wood. This was not so far from Greenwood now. A small village no longer, it was growing to become a town. When all was ready Kora sat down with a cup of tea and waited for the beginning of the evening that was to be Great-Aunt Virulla's Christmas Eve.

ooOOoo

* * *

**Author's Note: **

**I know that in the sentence "She went inside, followed by the cats who jumped on a windowsill" there is a grammatical mistake. I should have written "followed by the cats that jumped". The cats didn't let me.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Fritzi and Mitzi were having a great Christmas holiday with their cousins Heinz and Heidi. With their mother, Gretel, they had baked Christmas biscuits; with their father, Gustav, they had decorated the Christmas tree but on Christmas Eve Gretel and Gustav were too busy with preparations for Christmas to have time for the children. Instead of going to Hansel and Helga for Christmas, Gretel had to find and prepare a last minute Christmas feast. The previous day, late afternoon, they had received a message from Hansel, saying that a tree had fallen on the house, destroying the kitchen and that he and his wife would come on Christmas Eve to spend Christmas with Gretel and Gustav. Gretel had rushed out to buy Christmas food but could find no bird big enough to feed four grownups and four children. She couldn't even find a small bird. There were absolutely none to be had. Other meat was not available because everyone wanted a bird of some variety, not beef or pork. Those that did had ordered and collected it already. The only thing Gretel had found was mince. Now she was desperately looking through her cookbooks to find a recipe that would turn a pound of mince and some assorted sad looking vegetables into a Christmas feast for eight.

.

It was just after midday on Christmas Eve. Heinz and Fritzi were making a snowman. They had sent Mitzi and Heidi on a mission to find some stones for eyes and buttons and a twig for a nose. After a while Mitzi came running back to her cousin and her older sister.

"Heinz, Fritzi, sweets, there are sweets, near the trees."

Heinz and Fritzi left their snowman and followed Mitzi, something Heinz, the eldest of the four cousins, would never have done if he hadn't heard the magic word 'sweets'. They caught up with Heidi who had stuffed her mouth and her pockets already. The children picked up the sweets one after the other and went further and further into the wood. Suddenly they couldn't see any more sweets. Disappointed they looked up and there was the house. They couldn't believe their eyes. Never had they seen anything like it before. The smell of the spices from the gingerbread walls and the sweetness of the pancake roof were just irresistible. They ran to the house and started biting and licking at the house. When they'd had so much they couldn't move anymore, the chocolate door slowly opened.

.

All the stories of the ugly old witch who lived in a house made of gingerbread came back to them. They'd completely forgotten about her. Their parents had warned them so often about her and now she was about to come out of her house and lock them up and eat them. But the woman who came out was not old and ugly. She looked like a mum. She smiled and said, "Haven't you eaten too many sweets?"

They shook their heads. What strange questions grownups asked. There's no such thing as too many sweets.

"Perhaps you fancy a little nap? I've got a lovely room with four warm little beds in it."

It was as if her soft voice wrapped itself around the children. Heidi yawned and nodded her head. Fritzi and Mitzi said "We don't need naps anymore." Heinz just shrugged, "Naps are for little children."

They had started yawning just as much as Heidi though and followed her into the house, up the staircase and into the bedroom. With a little help from the friendly lady they got undressed and put on the pyjamas that were lying on the beds. They were in different colours and had a white circle with a picture on them. There were brown ones with a reindeer for Heinz, yellow ones with a Christmas bauble for Fritzi, red ones with a robin for Mitzi and green ones with a Christmas tree for Heidi. The lady tucked them in and sang a lullaby. Within minutes they were fast asleep.

ooOOoo

Kora came down from the children's bedroom and set phase two of her plan in motion. She sent her messenger, a white dove, with a note to Gretel and Gustav. The note simply said, "You are invited to spend Christmas Eve at my house in the forest. I'm sure Gretel remembers the place. It's the only one made out of gingerbread. The children are here already."

.

No sooner had Gretel read the message or she fainted. It was some time before her husband managed to revive her. When she came to, she panicked.

"Gustav, she's back and she's got the children. What are we going to do?"

She showed Gustav the letter. Gustav read it. Always a calm man, perhaps even a bit slow, he suggested they'd wait until dinnertime.

"Hansel and Helga will arrive fairly soon and we can all go together then. There really is no reason to worry, Gretel. Didn't you tell me you burnt the witch?"

At first Gretel seemed to agree but in the end she was so worried that she had to go immediately.

"We'll leave a note for Hansel. He can follow us to the gingerbread house."

"As you wish, Gretel, but it's probably a new neighbour trying to be sociable."

Gustav insisted they dress for the dinner.

"If the invitation is real we'll be dressed properly. If it's a hoax then they just get spoiled, they're only clothes after all."

.

When they arrived at the gingerbread house and the witch opened the door, Gretel was surprised. Instead of an old crone, a young woman, about her age she guessed, invited them in.

"You're rather early for dinner," the woman said. "But do come in. I suppose you were worried about the children. They're asleep upstairs."

"I want to see my children immediately," Gretel said. "And we're taking them home as well."

.

Gretel and Gustav followed the strange woman through the kitchen and up the stairs. The smell of the food trailed them all the way.

Upstairs she opened the door to the children's bedroom. They were all still asleep, a big smile on their faces. They looked so peaceful and happy that even Gretel hesitated to wake them up. Gustav pulled her sleeve.

"Gretel, can't we stay for Christmas Eve dinner. We've been invited and it smells delicious. You can always turn that stuff at home into a nice soup with meatballs."

Gretel had to agree with her husband. It was so tempting. She wouldn't have to cook. They would have a proper feast. She could make the soup Gustav talked about. Most importantly the children were safe. Would they remain safe though? The young woman must be a witch, without at a doubt. Normal people didn't live in gingerbread houses and Gretel had noticed the unusual pillows and blankets on the children's beds. But the food smelled so nice.

"Why did you send us an invitation for Christmas Eve dinner? We don't know you. It isn't usual to ask complete strangers for Christmas, nor to accept invitations from strangers. So why did you invite us."

"I know who you are, Gretel. But I'll tell everything when your brother Hansel and his wife have arrived. They shouldn't be long. My name is Kora, by the way."

"Did you cause the tree to fall on their house?"

"No, I just sent them an invitation to my party in your name and you the message about the house in Hansel's name. No need to destroy anything."

"You planned all this quite a while in advance then?"

"I did. Very carefully."

.

They went back downstairs and into the sitting area where everything was ready for an afternoon tea. Gretel was still a bit reluctant to touch anything and just sat on the sofa with a cup of tea in her hand. Gustav didn't refuse when he was offered tea and cake. When Kora asked about the town, he told her everything he knew. Enchanted by the smells and cosy feeling of the house Gretel finally started to relax, took a sip of her tea and joined in the conversation. She told Kora who sold what in town and which shops were not so satisfactory.

Kora could have told them something about their town as well. Being so close to the Wicclan border, the town had its fair share of witches. The mayor for instance. Kora had recognised Mrs Grey as a classmate in the Screecherella Academy, when her name had been Linda Spew. There were others as well, but Kora presumed they just wanted to live in peace and kept their secret.

.

Time flew by. The children woke up and came downstairs, following the scent of hot chocolate. After cake and a drink Kora and Gretel dressed them in the new clothes that were hanging in the little wardrobes in their bedroom. Then they played snakes and ladders with Gustav while the women went into the kitchen.

.

Gretel set the table while Kora checked the food, added a bit of herbs or spices here and there, stirred in the pans, checked the oven and really acted a bit nervous about her feast. To her surprise Gretel said, "You really don't need to worry. It smells absolutely delicious."

Finally there was a knock at the door.

"That'll be my brother and Helga. I'll call Gustav and the children to the table."

Kora nodded, walked to the door and opened it.

ooOOoo

Hansel and Helga had arrived at the house of Gretel and Gustav only to find nobody at home.

"That's strange," he said. "Gretel wrote to come here and we'd all go to her new neighbour together."

The letter had come just in time, so Helga hadn't started on any Christmas preparations. In it Gretel had written that a new neighbour was moving into Greenwood on the Vee and had invited Hansel and Gretel and their families to spend Christmas with her. She'd even written that it would be wonderful for her and Helga to have a completely relaxed Christmas for a change.

"How are we to get to the party? We don't even know where this new neighbour lives and we can't very well knock on every door in Greenwood, on Christmas Eve as well."

"Let's go inside," Hansel said. "We've got a key to the back door. Perhaps Gretel left a message."

They went in through the kitchen and found some strange mismatched vegetables on the sink, a load of cookbooks on the table and a pack of mince in the cold storage.

"It's as if Gretel was thinking about cooking a meal, Hansel. But why? We were all invited weren't we?"

In the living room they found a note on the table and one lying on the floor. Hansel picked the one from the table and recognised his sister's writing. It simply said, "She's back and she's got the children."

Helga meanwhile read the other note.

"It's an invitation for Christmas Eve. It is strange though, different from ours, as if it was a last minute invitation instead of one planned weeks ago."

She handed the note to Hansel who read it and became pale as death.

"The witch is back and she's got the children," he said.

"I thought you and Gretel burnt her."

"She must have survived. That's what Gretel's note means. Come, we have to find them and rescue the children, and probably Gretel and Gustav as well."

ooOOoo

Hansel didn't need anyone or anything to show him the way to the gingerbread cottage. He still had bad dreams about it occasionally. When he arrived at the clearing in the woods his eyes went immediately to the corner where the cage had been, before he even saw the cottage. There was no cage anymore. In its place was a pine tree, decorated with little red apples and strings of nuts. Between the branches fireflies were flying, blinking off and on, like lights. Slowly he walked to the door, followed by Helga. When he stood on the nougat steps in front of the chocolate door he froze, so Helga knocked.

Hansel was waiting for the old crone to open the door and say the words he knew by heart:

"I hear munching and crunching, munching and crunching.  
Is there a mouse eating my beautiful gingerbread house?"

.

The door was opened by a friendly looking woman, about their own age.

"You've finally arrived," she said. "We're just waiting for you two to start eating. Please, come in. My name is Kora, by the way."

Hansel wasn't sure whether to go inside or not. Helga waited to see what he would do. Then they heard Gretel telling the children to behave and Helga's hesitation was gone. Hansel followed her, a bit unsure. He thought the place looked different inside as well, lighter, friendlier.

Heidi, a real daddy's girl, came running to her father. She shook his hand to catch his attention.

"We've had such fun, daddy. And we slept and the pillow was marshmallow and I eated it."

.

Kora felt Hansel's uneasiness.

"I know what you're thinking, but I'm not planning to hurt you or your family. This really is an ordinary Christmas Eve party."

Her gentle voice soothed him and he felt the tension leave him. He went to sit with his wife and children at the beautifully set table and the feast began.

The food was delicious: a succulent bird was accompanied by perfectly roast potatoes and buttery vegetables. There was gravy and stuffing and cranberry sauce. Everybody ate until they thought they couldn't swallow another bite. When the pudding arrived though, they each had a large helping and finished it without a problem.

Then Kora cleared the table and brought coffee, cognac and liqueurs as well as Christmas biscuits and chocolates. The children had gone back to their games, taking their own bowl of chocolates with them, and only the grownups were still sitting at the table. Kora could nearly relax; the feast had been a success. Only one last thing left to do now.

ooOOoo

* * *

**Author's Note: **

**Big thanks to Jimli and SilverStarlightXD for following this story.  
**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

"I know you've all been surprised that a complete stranger asked you to join her for a Christmas Eve party in a gingerbread house," she began.

It was something they'd all wondered at before they'd entered the house, but the soothing atmosphere of the house had put it out of their mind. Suddenly they realized again that they were in a witch's house and their friendly host was a witch. Had she bewitched them? Had she put a spell on them so they would forget? They looked at her, suspicious of what she would do next.

.

"When I was twelve I came here to spend the holidays with my great-aunt Virulla only to find her in her oven. She was not dead so I had her taken to hospital where she recovered. She didn't come here anymore but went to live in a home. Just before she died, aunt Virulla asked me to arrange this party for you Hansel and you Gretel and your families. That's why she left me this cottage."

Hansel was ready to jump up if the witch tried anything funny. Gretel was fingering a knife that had been forgotten when clearing the table. What's going to come next, they wondered. What is she up to?

"This party is aunt Virulla's way of apologising to you for what you had to go through because of her. It's also a 'thank you' to you Gretel for showing her what she had become."

Kora looked at Hansel and Gretel and smiled at them. They could see nothing nasty or mean or deceptive in her smile. Gretel wasn't satisfied with the explanation and said, "I suppose she was really pleased when I shoved her in her oven."

"Not when it happened of course, but later she started thinking about the person she had become and how different from what she had wanted to be. She'd dreamed about getting married to the man she loved. She'd wanted an ordinary life but the family made her give up her sweetheart. Aunt Virulla didn't have the power to stand up to the family. Then she was sent here, far away from people in the middle of a dark forest. She was angry and that did exactly what the family wanted. It made her dark and cruel."

"And that's why she wanted to eat people?"

"I suppose. She'd never done it before. You two were the first children she'd caught. She had gone mad from the angry thoughts, the loneliness and the darkness of the forest."

"What did she hope to achieve with this party? Forgiveness? I can't, you know," said Hansel. "I still have nightmares about this place."

Kora looked into Hansel's eyes and reached into the deepest recesses of his mind.

"You won't anymore," she said once she'd broken eye contact. "But she never asked for forgiveness. She knew that was asking for the impossible. All she wanted was to say how sorry she was for what she had done."

Kora feared she would never be able to explain fully to people who had no magic themselves how a witch could be twisted, how bad she could become. Then Gretel said, "She hated everyone as much as I hated her. She wanted to kill people as much as I wanted to kill her. What exactly did she want you to say?"

"This is what she said to me: 'Tell them I offer my sincere apologies for the fear, anguish and pain I have caused them. Tell them I realise there is nothing I can do to make up for it but I wish them all the best for their future happiness.'" Kora paused for a moment. Then she added, "I hope you all enjoyed Great-aunt Virulla's Christmas Party and I wish you all a Merry Christmas."

.

She gave everybody, grownups and children, a present from the stack underneath the Christmas tree. This broke the tension and they stayed up a bit longer, talking and laughing. Then it was high time for bed. The children went back to the enchanted bedroom. For Heidi there was a new marshmallow pillow. Kora then showed the parents the rooms she had made ready for them.

"I'm sorry they are only ordinary beds," she said. "They are wonderfully soft though."

.

Kora went to her own bedroom. She looked out of the window and to nobody in particular except the moon and the stars she said, "I've done it, aunt Virulla. I've organised your party, just like you wanted it. I hope you can rest in peace now."

Then Kora too went to bed.

ooOOoo

Christmas Day. Kora had gotten up early to bake fresh rolls and cakes for breakfast. Gretel came into the kitchen just as Kora was about to take the last batch from the oven. When she saw the young witch so close to the oven, Gretel thought that perhaps she should push her in. So far the witch had been friendly. But would she stay that way? The witch who'd tried to eat Hansel had been an aunt of this one after all. Silently Gretel tiptoed closer to the woman near the now open oven.

"I wouldn't do it if I were you," said Kora. "I've used a pain-blocking spell and a burn-prevention spell before I started on the baking this morning. I can be so clumsy while baking."

She turned towards the table with the tray of steaming rolls. To her horror Gretel saw Kora was not using oven gloves.

"That's why it worked with great-aunt Virulla," said Kora while she put the tray down. "She didn't expect you to be so clever. Because of the pain it took her a while before she could say the spells."

"I … I didn't … I wasn't … I mean …"

Gretel didn't know what to say. She was embarrassed at being found out and scared when she imagined what this witch would do to her and her family.

"Don't worry. I can understand. You met one of the cruellest of the Blackwart family and they are the worst witches of all. But I'm not a Blackwart."

"But you're still part of the family."

"No, I've broken with them. Aunt Virulla was the only one I still visited and she was dropped by the family because of what happened here. We often talked about it. She was a nice person really."

"Do you mean you weren't joking? She really was happy I burnt her?"

"In a way. That's why she gave me this cottage and why I had to organise the Christmas party for you and your brother. She really wanted to thank you."

"Witches are strange people."

"They can be that and scary and dangerous as well. A lot of them are just ordinary people though, who just want ordinary lives."

Gretel blurted out, "Did you know there was a treasure?"

"Yes. Aunt Virulla presumed you'd taken it. She hoped it would be some sort of consolation for you two."

"It was and more than that. It gave me and Hansel a great start in life."

Gretel couldn't see any reaction in Kora's face.

"You don't mind it. And yet the treasure would have been yours, wouldn't it," said Gretel. It was a statement, not a question.

"No, I don't mind. I have no need for it," Kora said. "Now let's set the table. I expect everybody will soon be down for breakfast."

.

The aroma of fresh rolls and coffee, hot chocolate and cakes tempted everyone out of bed. Even the children left their marshmallow and waffle beds for the enticing smells. After breakfast when the table was cleared and the dishes done, Hansel and Helga, Gretel and Gustav, and the children Fritzi, Mitzi, Heinz en Heidi thanked Kora for a wonderful Christmas Eve, said goodbye and went to Gretel's and Gustav's house. All the vegetables were still lying near the sink. Gretel immediately set to work to make a soup. When she went to her cold storage to get the mince to make some little meatballs to add to the soup, she found a Christmas baked ham, preserved peaches and chutneys, all manner of pies, pasties and pastries, a large trifle with fresh fruit and lots of other goodies. Together with Gretel's soup there was enough for a great midday feast, worthy of the best Christmas ever.

ooOOoo

Kora stood outside the gingerbread cottage. In a box on the ground near her were four square waffles and some marshmallows. A row of pancakes was flying down from the roof. The chocolate door and nougat steps were shrinking to normal size.

A man on horseback came riding into the clearing in front of the cottage and descended.

"Ready to go home, Kora?"

"Just as soon as I've done clearing the sweets, darling."

"You're not leaving the gingerbread cottage then."

"No, I'm turning it into an ordinary cottage with an always filled larder. Just for people who get lost in the woods."

"You're sure you don't want to live here?"

"Absolutely. With you in the smithy all day and the children at school it would be far too lonely here for a witch. Aunt Virulla was right you know. A witch should not be all on her own, far away from people. It will give her dark thoughts and dark thoughts can make a dark witch."

The last of the sweets floated into the box. The cottage had no outside walls anymore. The toy house that had been hovering in the air expanded and slowly descended until it slotted into position. The gingerbread cottage was now a pretty, cosy little house, there to welcome lost travellers.

The man put his arm around Kora.

"It's a lovely place. We could come here in summer for a holiday."

"Yes, why not. Let's go home now, Karl. It's Christmas and I want to be with my family."

"It will be a bit of a squeeze with your family there and my family coming."

"Mr Schmidt, have you forgotten you've married a witch? Adding a few rooms is easy."

"I must say Mrs Schmidt; I forgot I married such a clever witch. Let's go now. You know, your cats arrived at the house early this morning."

"They might not be black, but they're the cleverest cats ever, real witch-cats."

.

Mr Schmidt lifted his wife on the horse and got on himself. Together they rode home on Christmas morning through the snow. Kora could hardly wait to see her parents and brother again. It had been far too long. Since the day the Blackwart family had taken her away from them, she'd only seen her family once when they had come on a short visit to see how she'd settled in the apartment they'd bought her.

When they arrived at their house in Greenwood on the Vee two children came running out, Kora's twin daughters. Kora had made sure the Blackwart family knew they were born. If they were going to try something she'd wanted it over and done with immediately. Lucky for the Blackwarts they had wisely decided to leave Kora and her family alone.

The twins were closely followed by Kora's parents and her brother Carsten who'd turned out to be as good at witchcraft as Kora. He introduced Kora to his wife and children.

"We will move back here in the new year," Carsten said. "Perhaps not in Greenwood, but certainly close by. And mum and dad will come as well."

"That is the best Christmas present you could give me," Kora said, her eyes glistening with tears. She hugged her brother and her parents.

While she was still embracing her family a booming voice cried out, "Karl, my boy, we've arrived."

Karl's parents and younger siblings had arrived as well, earlier than expected. They all piled into the house and with so many witches and warlocks providing rooms for everyone was child's play. The corridor upstairs changed into two rows of doors and behind each door was a comfortable room with all mod cons.

Cooking a meal for so many people was just as easy. Later, when everyone sat in the expanded living room, playing games or talking, Kora went into the kitchen to make a drink for everyone. When she stayed away rather longer than expected, Karl followed her. He found Kora looking out over the patch of wilderness that was supposed to be a garden one day. She was probably planning what to do next spring, he thought. She, the best witch, was going to do the garden without witchcraft, because a garden had to grow, not just appear, she'd said.

It still made him smile when he remembered when they first met. He'd never been too keen on all the witchcraft. That's why he was happy to fall in love with what he thought was an ordinary girl. It had come as a shock to find out who she really was. Steven Starr had told him and added that a witch like Kora was not meant for a loser like Karl. He had tried to stay away from her but he had missed her too much. Witch or not, Kora was the right woman for him, the only one.

He went up to her and put his arms around her; she leaned into him.

"Happy we moved here? No regrets?" he asked.

"Very happy and absolutely no regrets," she answered.

.

She had chosen Karl Schmidt, who hadn't bothered to learn anything beyond the basic spells, over the powerful and ambitious warlock Steven Starr. Aunt Virulla had applauded her choice.

"You've chosen the right one," she had said. "Karl loves you while Steven loves your skills. Just beware he doesn't try to use them on you or Karl."

"He won't anymore," she'd said. Then she had told her aunt what she had done to stop Steven's annoying behaviour. Her aunt had laughed out loud.

"Kora, you're the most powerful witch I know, probably even more powerful than Screecherella herself, and you've got more common sense than the lot of them put together. You'll be all right, no fear."

.

"Will you be making anymore gingerbread cottages?"

"Yes, next year, small ones, one for every family in Greenwood."

"And perhaps a big one for the Christmas market?"

"I'll ask the mayor."

"I'm sure she'll agree."

"Until then I'll just be Mrs Schmidt, wife of the blacksmith of Greenwood on the Vee."

They kissed and then took the drinks to the rest of the family.

ooOOoo

The following year Kora did what she had promised. Every family in Greenwood received a lovely gingerbread house and an enormous one was built as centrepiece for the Christmas market. Everyone could eat of it and nibble on it as much as they wanted. Anything eaten was magically replaced overnight.

.

Since then people have made gingerbread houses, to eat or give away for Christmas. Dear reader, have a virtual gingerbread house from me and with it my very real wishes for

**A MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR.**


End file.
